Stubborn
by orchidluv
Summary: Bella is intrigued by Edward when she moves to Forks but after his glaring, rudeness, and outright refusal to be friends, she stops pushing him and moves on. Now Edward is the one pushing, but will he get through to her? Women can be stubborn. O/S


**I don't own anything Twilight. SM owns it all, I'm just messing around! I hope you enjoy it.**

Bella ran the fingers of one hand through her shoulder length brown hair and drummed the fingers of her other hand on the desk in front of her. Biology sucked on a normal day, but this dude next to her needed to keep his black glare to himself before he found himself with a broken nose.

 _Snobby rich kids._

She didn't bother sniffing her hair or her underpits, she took a shower that morning. Turning her body to the right, away from her lab partner, she focused again on what the Biology teacher expected of his students. She watched as her teacher shoved his thick horn rimmed glasses up his nose with a calloused finger. She idly noticed that he needed to trim his fingernails. Wrinkling her nose in distaste, she looked down at the notebook in front of her. She'd done this exact lab before, in her previous high school. It's actually kind of pathetic that this hick town is so far behind in it's curriculum.

The bell finally rang after a torturous ninety minutes and Bella snatched her bookbag off the back of her chair, heading for gym. She was thankful that gym was only an hour long period and not the required ninety of every other mandatory class. Just one more hour and she could leave.

Seeing as she had started her first day at Forks High on a Friday, Bella was content to spend her weekend decorating her room to her taste. Her father, Charlie, hadn't changed a thing since she'd visited three summers ago and she did not have the personality of a fourteen year old anymore.

Monday morning dawned dark and cloudy and Bella grumbled to herself as she climbed out of her double bed to trudge sleepily to the shower. An hour later, Bella was pulling her old nineteen fifty three rusty red pickup into the parking lot of her high school. Hopping out of the cab and onto the pavement in her ICB's, black skinny jeans, and dark blue henley shirt, she hiked her bookbag onto her shoulder and started toward the main doors. Halfway to her destination, however, the hairs at the back of her neck raised. She paused briefly and bent low, pretending to retie her boot while she looked around for something out of the ordinary to give her such an eerie feeling.

 _Nothing...Unless you count three quarters of the schools senior class staring at me as something..._

Then she spotted him...Edward Cullen. Mister Snobby Rich kid himself! His strange colored hair made her want to run her fingers through it to try and tame it.

 _Say what?_

No, she didn't want to do that at all. She turned back toward the main doors and trooped forward. She did not miss the Black Glare before doing so.

Lunchtime found Bella sitting alone. Sure, many of her classmates wanted to play with the new toy, but make no mistake, Bella Swan does not play well with others. She's got her own Black Glare prefected. The snobby rich kids entered through the side door of the cafeteria and made a show of sitting gracefully at their claimed table. The big dude, Emmett, was adorable and Bella bet she could have some fun pulling pranks around this hole of a town but his girlfriend slash foster sister looked like an uber bitch. That was enough to give Bella pause because though she had her own glare, she knew when to not mess with the ubers. They could mess someone up.

The smallest snobby rich kid actually looked the friendliest and Bella found herself wondering what kind of friend she would be. Would the tiny creature be boring as all hell or would she be a talker? When Bella watched as the tiny girls smile widened for no apparent reason, she decided that the little fae was a talker...Probably a bouncer too.

 _Did she just bounce as if to prove my point?_

Black Glare snobby boy was at it again but when he caught Bella's eyes on him he smoothed his brow and his lips curled slightly at the corners. He actually looked very handsome when he smiled. Bella looked down at her lunch tray and concentrated on her meal. Handsome? She and snobby rich kids do not mix.

The next week went as such...Bella would watch the Cullens, as she decided to call them in her mind. If she kept calling them snobby rich kids, she may end up saying it out loud accidentally and that would bring uber bitch's attention to her. That was better avoided than tempted. Edward would try to communicate and even got very close to rubbing his nose against Bella's neck at one point but the next thing she knew he was saying she shouldn't be his friend, giving her the Black Glare, and walking off in the middle of conversations. Her last straw was on their Biology trip to the compost farm yesterday.

Bella was following her classmates through a greenhouse while her teacher tried to keep Tyler Crowley from drinking the compost tea. Edward came up behind Bella looking very sexy in his thigh length peacoat over his blue denim jeans and black band tee. He had a scowl on his face as usual and his lips were pinched tight until he opened his mouth.

"Why are you going to Jacksonville?" He practically spat at Bella like going to see her mother was a terrible dilemma he did not agree with. Well, excuse me mister snobby rich kid but it is not up to you!

Bella gave him a sideways glance and furrowed her brows, "How the hell do you even know I'm going to Jacksonville?" She asked him as she tripped over a hose on the greenhouse floor.

Edward's hand shot out as if to keep her from falling but he never made contact with Bella, yanking his hand back from her as if her skin would burn him. She had her black zip up hoodie tied around her denim clad hips, her standard ICB's on her feet, and her black Skillet band tee shirt on today. She didn't understand why Edward kept his coat on. The greenhouse was _humid_.

He proceeded to banter with her rudely, telling her she didn't answer his question to which she replied that he didn't deserve to know these answers when he was being a brat. He actually cracked a smile and she could have sworn she heard a chuckle but in the next second his face was pinched again like he smelled something bad. Once the tour of the compost farm was finished, Edward followed Bella out to the busses that would take them back to Forks High. Edward's tiny foster sister, the bouncy one, came up with her boyfriend slash foster brother at her side. Her dark brown hair was smoothed fancily against her scalp with little swirls of hair around her ears and she had a huge smile on her face as usual...So opposite her moody brother.

 _Pity_.

"Will you be riding back to the school with us, Bella? I'd love to get - " Alice started, but Edward rudely cut her off by smacking his fist against the bus door and told his sister their bus was full. Bella knew for a fact that it wasn't and she was angry. Alice's boyfriend slash brother eyed Bella warily as he walked around Alice as far away as he could from Bella before disappearing on the bus with Edward. Alice looked at Bella apologetically but before she could say anything, Bella spun around on her heels and trooped away toward her own bus.

She doesn't need that jerk. Sure, he's beautiful and he has a glorious smile. His body looks toned like a runner, built for speed. His fingers are long and she bet he really knew how to use them. His hair still begged for her fingers to rake through it but she was done.

By the time the busses let the Biology class off back at school, their teacher dismissed them to their vehicles. As Bella hopped up into the cab of her beast, someone tapped on her shoulder. Bracing herself for more whiplash, she turned to her shoulder poker.

Eyebrows shot up in surprise, "Well hello tea drinker." She greeted Tyler Crowley. He smiled widely, showcasing his pearly whites behind beautiful dark lips. His skin looked like the smoothest milk chocolate. His african american descent diluted by his paler-than-Bella mother.

"Hey, Bella. I was wondering if you'd like to go to the dance with me on Friday." His deep tenor was liquid sex and his pale blue eyes sparkled happily as his confidence told him he would get this date.

Bella pretended to ponder her answer, tapping her chin with a slender finger. Her eyes stared straight into his as she 'pondered', but Tyler's confidence never waivered. She decided she liked that about him. Dropping her hand from her face, she touched his arm lightly for a moment.

"I suppose you heard I'm going to be in Jacksonville this weekend." Her voice was low, almost sultry and it seemed to pull Tyler in as he stepped toward Bella subconciously.

He looked down at her, "We both know you're not going anywhere, Bella. Except to the dance...with me." Tyler's voice was also pitched lower than before. Bella liked the sound of it and the way his minty breath caressed her face. She turned to look out the windshield of her truck and her eyes connected with the three Cullens that took the field trip with her. With a mirthful twinkle in her eye, she turned back to her date.

"And you know this how, Tyler? I miss my mother very, very much you know." She murmured, shaking her head slowly in mock sadness.

Tyler placed a long thick finger under Bella's chin and raised her head just slightly before leaning closer to her face. There were scant inches separating them now and Bella's heart was in overdrive.

"You were waiting for me. Not that puppy dog, Newton." He told her succinctly. Then his soft lips pillowed against hers in a kiss that caught Bella's breath. Her eyes fluttered closed and her hands jumped to Tyler's forearms, holding him in place. The kiss was gentle, his lips moving with hers, his tongue sweeping over her lips but not in permission to enter, just to taste. Tyler leaned back, breaking the kiss with a soft smack. His lips pulled in a large wide smile and he told her he would pick her up at six.

"Hey! I never agreed to go to the dance with you!" She called to his retreating back, his cocky swagger making his rear end wriggle tantalizingly. Tyler paused in his retreat to turn back toward Bella. His smile said it all. She had agreed...with that kiss. Bella smiled at Tyler and gave him a finger fluttering wave before righting herself in her truck and turning the key to start the beast.

Her eyes met Black Glare Cullen again before noticing Alice's beautiful face was set in a frown and Bella decided she would tell her tomorrow that she was much more stunning with a smile. Suddenly Alice's face broke out into the most breathtaking smile Bella had ever seen, it made Bella smile back automatically. Edward turned his glare on his sister and the boyfriend slash brother was shaking in laughter.

Bella just shook her head, threw a finger wave at the trio then set out for home.

Edward avoided Bella like the plague for the next three days. If she turned toward him in class or in the hallway, he would dart away as fast as his long legs could take him. He was acting like a child and Bella was glad she had decided to stop their little cat and mouse game. Her fae-like friend, Alice, however was pushing her way into Bella's life like she couldn't believe. Bella had a sneaking suspicion that the tiny person had a hint of clairvoyant in her. If Bella decided to seek Alice out, she would turn up almost immediately. Bella had decided the night before to ask Alice for her phone number then the phone rang from the kitchen and when Charlie called up to Bella that the phone call was for her, guess who was on the other end.

 _Go on...guess_!

The two girls had been practically inseparable the previous few days and tonight was not any different. Bella's new friend was primping her for tonight's dance. She was surprised at Alice's exuberance and sat still while Alice flitted around her, curling, fluffing, and pinning her hair just right, all while chattering away a hundred miles a minute.

"Tyler is going to love this dress, I just know it. This color will match his beautiful eyes and those kitten heels will make those beautiful eyes fall right out of his head!" Her musical giggle resounded through the room and Bella laughed with her.

"I hope they don't actually fall out, I like looking at them." Bella blushed before lowering her voice. "I know your secret, Alice."

Alice's hands froze, holding a bobby pin so tight, Bella feared it would snap in half, her friend looked so frightened. Her golden doe eyes wide open, her pink bow lips open in an "o" shape. Bella rushed on, not wanting to offend her newfound friend.

"It's okay, Alice, it's alright! My mom studied clairvoyance and played with tarot cards for years, she's always believed in mediums and she passed that open-mindedness to me. Please, don't be scared, I won't tell anyone, I swear it!" Bella drew a large breath of air into her lungs. She honestly couldn't fathom how Alice could chatter so much and never lose her breath and here Bella was practically panting.

Alice's hands continued to pin Bella's hair, though at a much slower pace than before. Her face was contemplative.

"You really don't mind that I'm psychic?" She asked the brunette quietly. She was tenative to let Bella know for certain, but she needn't worry. Bella had no qualms.

"Of course not. If you'd met my mother, or my dad's friends on the rez, you'd know I'm one of the most open-minded people you've ever met." Bella placed her dainty fingers against Alice's forearm before looking into the mirror in front of her and when she saw the magic Alice performed, she gasped.

"Alice! I look amazing! Thank you so much!" Bella touched her cheek in awe as she studied the perfect crown braid, her delicately wing tipped eyes, her rosy pink lips. She stood and embraced her smaller girl in a tight hug before spinning in a circle, letting her ice blue wrap dress flow out at her hips. The tiny cream kitten heels made her feel even more beautiful.

"You already were amazing, Bella. I just highlighted your eyes and elongated your neck with this pretty updo." Alice was being modest and Bella knew it. She's looked at her own reflection every day of her seventeen years. She knew how much work it took to make her look good.

Once downstairs and Charlie had hugged his daughter, stammering and blushing to tell her how stunning she was, Tyler knocked on the door. His eyes almost _did_ pop out of his head and Bella stifled a giggle while glancing at Alice who stood off to the side with a huge grin plastered on her fae face. Charlie wished them a good night before showing them out of the house. Bella had a feeling he needed a beer.

Alice left as soon as Bella sat in Tyler's car and the ride to the dance was quiet but comfortable. Tyler kept his right hand woven with Bella's the whole ride to the school. At the dance, in the school's gymnasium, Bella and Tyler held each other close, dance after dance. She had earned many death glares from a few of her female student body and Tyler would be a pile of black goo if Mike's eyes could have actually shot the laser beams he was trying so hard to shoot. The couple laughed it off and held each other closer.

About halfway through the night, their dance was interrupted by Bella's good friend, Jacob. His long black hair was pulled low at the nape of his neck, a white button down shirt hung oversized on his skinny frame. She would bet her college savings that tie came from his father's dresser. He gave her a timid smile and asked if he could cut in. Tyler glanced at Bella to be sure she was comfortable with the native, received a nod, then departed to the refreshments table. Jake stepped close to Bella, almost too close but she flashed him a smile as well.

"Jake, what has you slumming it with the palefaces?" She joked. His smile grew slightly more relaxed and he wrapped his arms low around her waist. They swayed back and forth, foot to foot, not really dancing.

"Well, it's kind of embarrassing...?" He trailed off at the end making it sound like a question. Clearing his throat, he continued, "My dad sorta paid me twenty bucks to come out and talk to you. I'm really sorry, Bella." His face was flushed with a blush that Bella could barely make out on his bronzed skin.

She smiled encouragingly at her childhood friend, "So what did the old man want you to talk to me about?"

"He's asking you to stay away from the Cullens. He says...quote...'we'll be watching'..." He paused to lick his lips, "I'm sorry Bella, please don't be mad at me."

Bella squeezed her arms around Jake's neck where they were resting while they swayed.

"Hey. Don't." She said, "I've heard the legends, Jake. I'm aware of the superstitions. Let Billy know I'm only friends with Alice, the little one, and I won't be spawning some demon baby anytime soon." Then to lighten the tension in the Quileute's stance she smiled widely and pushed up on her toes to whisper in his ear, "Besides, she doesn't have the right parts for that."

Jake gaped at her.

Bella giggled wildly at his expression while Jake sputtered, trying to come up with some retort for that...He failed to.

At that moment, Tyler reclaimed his date and Bella bid a still flustered Jacob goodbye. He wrapped his arms around his beautiful date and leaned down, placing his lips at her ear.

"Are you having a good time, beautiful Bella?" His warm breath fanned across her cheek as he murmured in her ear and she closed her eyes as she leaned her chest into his.

"I am now that you're back." She told him.

The two teens continued dancing well toward the end of the night. When the DJ announced that the dance was closing with one last song and Bella was going to suggest leaving then to beat the crowd, she felt a tap on her shoulder. She sighed.

Turning to her left, her jaw dropped. Tyler looked great in his black blazer over baby blue button down and black slacks, but Edward...There were no words. His black blazer sat perfectly tailored to his slim, lean shoulders. His black pinstripped slacks showcasing his muscular thighs, a crisp white button down peeked from under his blazer and his bronze hair swept in a stylish backsweep topped his head. His eyes sparkled with mirth as he watched Bella ogle him. She snapped her jaw shut and narrowed her eyes at him, arms still wrapped around Tyler's neck.

"What do you want, Cullen?" She snapped. She knew she had no reason to be rude, aside from her bruised ego. He frustrated her with his cat mouse game and Black Glare.

Edward's smirk lessened slightly as he took in her tone. "I was wondering if I could have this last dance, that is, if that would be acceptable to your...date."

He seemed uncomfortable suddenly, Bella noticed. Maybe he wasn't the cocky bastard she pegged him to be. Still, this was the last dance of the evening, she was in the arms of her handsome date, and she'd already told herself she was done playing Snobby Rich kid games.

Forcing a smile on her face, she looked Edward in the eye and spoke with less heat than when she greeted him with, "No thank you, Edward. I think I'll pass."

Shock passed over Edward's features and Tyler's arms tightened back around Bella's waist. His arms had slackened some, seemingly expecting Bella to take the handsome Cullen boy up on his offer. Bella turned her eyes back to her date and leaned her head on his chest slowly, only breaking eye contact once she passed his chin. Tyler tilted his head down to place a soft kiss on the crown of Bella's head and kept swaying her as the last song of the night filtered through the gym.

Leading Bella up the walk to her front door, Tyler held her hand in his. She turned to face him, oblivious to the eyes that watched her every move from the trees in Charlie's side yard.

"I had a really great time tonight, Tyler. Thank you." Her fingers played with his.

Tyler moved closer to her, clasping their hands tighter together, "So did I. Did you see Cullen's face? He was still standing there when we left." He snorted then let out a low chuckle. Bella laughed with him.

"Was he glaring? It's all he does." She giggled softly as Tyler nodded his head. Slowly, he leaned forward, looking down on his delicate date, his eyes focused on her lips. Bella licked her lips before letting them fall slightly apart. She had hoped Tyler would kiss her goodnight. He had really nice lips.

Tyler's mouth came down on Bella's soft but demanding. A contrast to their kiss earlier in the week when he asked her to the dance. His sweet minty breath was inhaled by her as his kiss seemed to consume her. Tyler let go of Bella's fingers to wrap both hands around her waist, palms wide against her back, holding her close to his body. Bella relished in his body heat. Alice hadn't chosen a wrap or cartigan so she was getting chilly standing on the front porch of her father's house. Tyler's kiss helped steal the chill away as a fire started burning in her belly. When his tongue demanded entrance, she moaned quietly into his mouth. His soft, wet tongue caressing hers.

A throat clearing behind Bella made the couple jump apart, startled at the intrusion. Neither of them had heard the door open. Charlie stood in the doorway, shoulder leaned against the jamb, moustache twitching. His eyes were set to glare.

Bella was really sick of people glaring at her.

She rolled her eyes and turned back to Tyler, who stayed a respectable distance away, but never took his pale blue eyes off his date. Bella stepped forward and cupped Tyler's cheeks in both her tiny hands before popping up quickly and pressing a kiss to his pillowy lips. Tyler's eyes widened at the blatant claim in front of her father, but he smiled down at her, grasping her fingers one more time, rubbing his thumb along the tips of them.

"Goodnight, Bella." He murmured. One more quick peck, this time on her cheek, Tyler turned and practically skipped to his car.

Bella watched him drive away, a small finger wave when he glanced back. Turning toward the saboteur, she poked her tongue out and shoved past him to go into the kitchen. Eyes from the treeline followed her movements through the house, but the girl was oblivious. Charlie chuckled as he followed his daughter into the kitchen, watching as she rummaged for a late night snack.

They spoke briefly about the dance, laughed off Billy Black's superstition, then parted ways to fall into deep slumbers. Bella dreamt of pale blue eyes and chocolate skin.

Monday morning, when Bella parked her beast and hopped out of the truck in her customary ICB's, long sleeved henley, and dark skinny jeans, she wasn't too surprised to see Edward Cullen staring at her across the lot. What did surprise her was that he was not glaring at her. His expression was unreadable, almost intense, as he stared her down two rows away. Instead of playing into his little game, she headed straight into the school without another glance his way.

By the time Biology class started, she had officially figured out that Edward was done avoiding her. He seemed to be everywhere. She assumed he had wanted her to go crawling to him, begging for his attention like any of the other yuppie teenage girls would. Hadn't he figured out by now that Bella was not a normal teenaged girl? When Edward folded himself gracefully into the seat next to hers at their shared lab table, she could have sworn he called her stubborn.

She smirked.

She got her stubborness from Charlie.

Edward let loose a chuckle and passed her a note. She didn't bother looking at it. Crumpling up the note she lobbed it forward into the waste basket next to the teacher's desk. She gleefully whispered " _swish_ " as it fell into the basket. Glancing sideways at Edward, she saw his absolute shock. His jaw hung slack, his eyes wide before they narrowed dangerously. Bella felt a breeze and her notebook paper fluttered. Looking down to smooth her papers from the apparent draft, she gasped when she saw the crumpled note sitting in front of her. Whipping her head to her lab partner, she hissed, "What the fuck is that?"

Edward leaned nonchalantly back in his stool and looked innocently toward the front of the classroom.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Bella."

Bella huffed and said, "Stubborn, indeed." Recrumpling the note that _Edward_ somehow grabbed from the waste basket, she drew her arm back to toss it back where it belonged. Before she was able, it was snatched from her fingers. Her face flushed red and she glanced around, thinking the teacher saw her folly. Edward had smoothed out the note once again and placed it in front of her. Finally relenting, she looked at it. Perfect elegant script stared at her from the crinkled paper.

" _Stubborn._ " Was all it said.

Despite herself, Bella giggled then clamped her hand over her mouth, eyes darting to the front of the class. but the teacher was engrossed in grading papers, content to let the seniors mess around quietly.

Lunchtime found Bella sitting with Tyler alone in the corner of the cafeteria. His fingers curled around hers as they quietly spoke to one another. She felt the hair raise at the back of her neck and looked around to see that all five of the Cullens had their creepy golden eyes on her.

 _Superstitions my Aunt Fanny_

Bella knew. They knew she knew. She wouldn't confront them though. She liked Tyler and she wasn't going to give in to Edward's smouldering eyes or the temptation to card her fingers through his hair. She was stubborn, and she was happy to be.


End file.
